Political Scene: The Politics of Income Inequality

The rhetoric used to discuss income inequality, the Affordable Care Act, and the nascent push to raise the minimum wage may possibly be standing in the way of reducing America’s wealth gap. For one thing, we talk about them as though they are three distinct issues. “The biggest thing which Obama has done to reduce inequality, if it all goes through and works properly, will be Obamacare,” John Cassidy explains. “It’s not just a health-care initiative; it’s also a big redistributionary initiative.” Cassidy and George Packer join host Dorothy Wickenden on this week’s Political Scene podcast to assess President Obama’s recent speech on inequality and the politics of the wealth gap. Packer simplifies the issue in a way the President did not: “It’s a really profound moral as well as economic issue: Should you really be below poverty level if you work full time?”

“This is about political will, and political will is simply gone in Washington,” Packer says. Still, there may be hope yet. “I think the Republicans are out of the argument; they have no answers,” Packer continues. “But among Democrats I do think that this is going to be the battle of 2016.”